Students and Teachers Strike For a Better Education

An interesting feature of high school and university life is the “paro” and the “toma”. From the Spanish verb parar – to stop or to stand up (for something), a paro is when the students stop attending classes because of some discords with the school administration or the government over education funding or priorities. During paro, teachers must show up for class, wait ten minutes for students who are not going to be there, and then go about our business for the rest of the time. Many students would like to attend classes but peer pressure is overwhelming. Thus school might as well be cancelled until the paro is settled. Students are nonetheless expected to continue studying the class materials using as their guide the “cronograma” which is sort of equivalent to a class schedule in the U.S. syllable.
A paro is not as harsh as a toma. Toma, from the Spanish verb tomar – to take, is when the students literally take over a building or campus. During a toma, classes are officially cancelled for the teachers. However, the students are still expected to keep up with their studies. The politically active students seem to be a small but committed minority. For them, this is a time to make speeches and participate in marches. For the rest, they go back home, work, or party – but they do not study. The time of paro and toma is essentially lost for educational purposes.
Our university was in paro and/or toma for 5 weeks beginning in around May 19. We did not see students again until June 23. This was a national event. Public and semi-private schools all over Chile were on stike and some schools continue to be. The teachers even took time off to march on the national congress and show support through demonstrations in cities around Chile.

U of Catolica in toma

The debate with the government over how schools are funded continues even now. It is one of the most important issues facing Chile. As one protestor’s sign eloquently stated: “When Pinochet sold the schools, he sold our future.” We have included a blog entry on the education system and current reform efforts. And w have put together a slide show of the paros, tomas, and marches.